


An Appeal for Asset Gottlieb

by sea_level



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Contains no actual time travel, Established Relationship, M/M, Takes place after PR1, Time Travel, Time Travel Agent!Hermann
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-07-18
Packaged: 2019-06-12 09:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15336423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sea_level/pseuds/sea_level
Summary: “Newton,” Hermann says and then looks over his shoulder to make eye contact. “I know you’re there. If you could please come over here.”Newt jolts and takes a few breaths to calm his nerves. “Coming!” he says, his voice squeaking a bit.“It’s unfortunate that you had to hear some of that,” Hermann says, “but I suppose it is for the best.” He takes ahold of one of Newton’s hands and holds it tightly. He looks absolutely shattered. “I haven’t told you everything about myself.”





	An Appeal for Asset Gottlieb

**Author's Note:**

> This was an ask box fic I did on my tumblr which i was originally gonna try to fix the pacing of, but it's been too long, and I said I was going to post it on ao3 so hi.
> 
> 'prompt' was secret relationship and time travel. i didn't do too hot on the secret relationship bit but here we are
> 
> you may ask, "why is there so much worldbuilding? the fic obviously doesn't need it" to which i reply, "Hi and welcome to my strange addiction"

Newt wakes up to an empty bed which--disappointing--but he’s not too concerned because it usually just means that Hermann’s had some idea that he wanted to get down and he couldn’t do it from bed. Newt gets it because he does the same, except he usually accidentally elbows Hermann awake in the process of wrestling himself out of bed. He straightens his undershirt, finds a presentable enough pair of sweatpants, and makes his way down to the lab.

The door’s askew when he gets there, and he’s about to barge in and announce his presence when he hears Hermann’s worried voice, quiet and frantic.

“I need more time.”

What? That doesn’t make sense. If anything, they’ve got all the time in the world. Post-Pitfall funding will get them through at least the next five years. There are no impending due dates hanging over their heads, no Kaiju knocking at their door. It’s the first time in nearly thirteen years that they’ve actually had all this time.

Newt edges into the lab, careful not to jar the door or knock anything over. He’s not keen on eavesdropping, but, now that he’s here and curious, he’s not entirely sure what to do.

Hermann’s alone, sitting at his desk with his face towards the chalkboards. There’s blue light reflected onto his face. If Newt had to guess, Hermann’s probably talking to someone on his phone or maybe his laptop.

“No,” Hermann says. “No, I am not compromised. I merely need more time to ensure that the future here is secure. No, Ma’am.”

Newt edges his way across the lab to his own table.

“No, I have no personal attachments. Forgive me, but you know my record--” Hermann stops talking abruptly, his mouth snapping shut and his face grim. “Understood,” he says after a moment. “Five days? Understood.”

The blue light fades and Hermann sags in his chair. It grows so quiet in the lab that Newt can hear the tick of an old analog clock. Newt had forgotten that they’d had one of those.

“Newton,” Hermann says and then looks over his shoulder to make eye contact. “I know you’re there. If you could please come over here.”

Newt jolts and takes a few breaths to calm his nerves. “Coming!” he says, his voice squeaking a bit.

“It’s unfortunate that you had to hear some of that,” Hermann says, “but I suppose it is for the best.” He takes ahold of one of Newton’s hands and holds it tightly. He looks absolutely shattered. “I haven’t told you everything about myself.”

“Is this a Terminator kind of thing?” Newt jokes before he can stop himself.

Hermann blinks, apparently thrown. “I--no, I don’t believe so. Provided, I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”

“A cyborg goes back in time and tries to kill this dude’s mom whose kid’s--the dude--he’s gonna stop this robot uprising.”

“Not quite like that,” Hermann says.

Not quite? What does that even mean? Is Hermann a robot? That doesn’t make any sense because then the drift wouldn’t have worked and-- Newt forces himself to stay quiet despite the hundreds of questions building up in his mind and attempts to school his face into a neutral expression. He’s pretty sure he’s not doing it right, if Hermann’s pitying face is anything to go by.

“I am from a different timeline, technically,” Hermann says, “and I was sent here with a mission, but that mission doesn’t involve killing anyone.” He hesitates, then amends, “Except for the Kaijus, though I suppose I am only indirectly involved in that.”

Ugh, Kaijus. Wait, no. No, Hermann just told him that he’s a time traveller and maybe some kind of secret agent? It sounds like some kind of science fiction story. “You’re from a different timeline?” Newt fights to keep his voice down. “How come I didn’t see it in the drift?”

Technically those memories are not connected to this body?” Hermann suggests but his tone of voice says question more than statement. Newt’s confusion must show on his face, because Hermann is quick to explain. “I was sent here as energy, but I was born here. Safety precautions dictate that energy is the only thing that can leave the base, though mass can enter.”

“Dude,” Newt says, “that’s wicked sick.”

“Wicked sick?” Hermann asks. “Is that supposed a good or a bad thing?”

“Oh a good thing for sure, dude,” Newt says, “it means that you’re the coolest.” The clarification doesn’t seem to do much for Hermann’s confusion, but he does look incrementally more relieved. Good. “Wow, this is nuts. Anyways, what’s up with the five more days thing?”

Hermann flinches. “That’s my deadline to return, to leave here,” he says. His grip tightens on Newt’s hand. “To leave you. My mission here is technically complete, so my supervisors have deemed it necessary for me to travel back.”

Oh, fuck, that’s bad. “Right, nope, not gonna happen,” Newt places his free hand over Hermann’s. “It took us ten entire years to admit that we love each other, and I’m not about to go giving up on us so easily.” He leans forward to kiss him but then reassesses. It doesn’t really look like what Hermann needs right now.

“It’s not so easy to disobey,” Hermann says gently. “They can recall me at any time, and doing so forcefully leaves the body behind.”

Newt winces. “That doesn’t sound good,” he says.

“It’s a rather painful process.” Hermann agrees.

“I guess that rules that one out,” Newt says. It’s all coming on so fast. He’s still struggling to grasp everything that’s Hermann’s told him so far. Part of him can’t help but wonder if Hermann’s leading him on, but he doesn’t listen to it. Hermann’s never ever been that guy. “What was that thing about attachments, by the way?”

Hermann sighs. “Technically, I, or rather we, my fellow agents and I, are forbidden from forming personal relationships, except for those necessary for the completion of the mission.”

A quick flash of doubt washes over his mind concerning the veracity of his and Hermann’s relationship, but Hermann continues before it can sink its claws in.

“I have known my fellow agents to engage in such behavior from time to time, given that it never interfered with the mission. With you, I have failed utterly and completely.” He pulls a hand free but places it right on top of Newt’s. “I love and care for you deeply, and I do not wish to leave you in any capacity.”

“I love you too, Hermann,” Newt says, leaning over to pull Hermann is his arms. They stay like that, comfortable, until it starts to feel too much like Newt’s trying to memorize what this feels like, and he doesn’t want to deal with what that implies.

Newt pulls back a bit so he can look at Hermann’s face. “I take it that when you’re compromised, it doesn’t mean they just terminate your contract and you can stay here.”

“When you’re compromised,” Hermann says with a grimace, “you are forcefully recalled and then you are killed.”

“Oh fuck,” Newt says.

\-----

“Hey,” Newt says, “so why can’t you just stay here longer and then time and space travel back to whenever they want you to be back.”

“Safety precautions prevent incoming time travel. It’s mostly to ensure that base or the organization is never sabotaged, but it means that all active assets, myself included, are tied to a linear timeline relative to the process of time at the base,” Hermann explains.

“Huh,” Newt says, trying to process what Hermann just said. “I think that could be more clearly phrased.”

“It means regardless of what I do, time will always pass in the base the same it does for me. For instance, if I was capable of travel to, say 1920, and I spent 5 hours there and then returned to here the second that I left, one second will have passed for you, but five hours will have passed for both me and the base,” Hermann says.

“That’s stupid,” Newt replies.

Hermann, to Newt’s utter surprise, laughs hard. “It is unfortunate,” he says when he is able, “yes.”

“We’ll figure this out,” Newt vows.  
\------

“What if I went with you?” Newt asks over lunch. He ignores it when Hermann steals his last orange slice.

“Hm?”

“To the base,” Newt says, “or whatever you call it.”

Hermann swallows his food. “I, ah. I'm not qualified to register you as anything less than a prisoner. If you are not properly tagged, the transportation process will kill you.”

“Yikes.” Newt chews on some kind of fibrous vegetable. It’s getting stuck between his teeth. “But if you did register me as a prisoner, at least we'd be in proximity to each other, right?”

“No,” Hermann says. “Except in the rarest circumstances, prisoners face either solitary confinement or death.”

“That's more than a little horrifying,” Newt says. “That happens to all of the prisoners?”

“We only arrest people for the most egregious crimes, Newton,” Hermann says

Newt gulps. “Alright, let's rule that one out.”

\------

“An appeal,” Hermann says on the fourth night, nearing the final day. “If a knowledgeable but unattached third party makes an appeal to the base, I may be granted permanent posting here, until the death of this body.”

Newt’s half asleep when Hermann starts talking, but he’s flailing upwards by the end of it, trying as hard as he can to listen.

“Wait, wait, wait,” he says, his voice nearly cracking. “Why didn’t you mention this sooner!?”

“I had forgotten it existed!” Hermann replies. His hands are on Newt’s arms, clinging tight. “It’s been over 3000 years since the last appeal, and that was in the middle of a cold war.”

Newt can’t think of any cold wars happening on Earth three millennia ago which must mean...oh shit, good aliens. Wait, does that mean Hermann’s an alien? Maybe not physically, but like-- There isn’t any time to process this information, though, because there’s an actual, solid chance that Hermann might not have to leave, and that’s not something he can just get distracted from.

“So all I gotta do is convince a bunch of people that you’re absolutely necessary for the continued safety of this world,” Newt says, trying to slow his heart rate. This is definitely something he can do. Everything’s going to be okay.

“You must also convince them that we are nothing more than colleagues. Friendship still is even too close of a personal connection,” Hermann says.

“It’s okay,” Newt says. He’s looking hard down at the bed. “If it means that you can stay here, I’m pretty sure I can lie.” He laughs, somewhat hysterically. “I mean I got six PhDs, right? You can’t defend that many theses without a bit of bullshitting.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Hermann says, loosening his grip on Newt’s arms. He sounds impossibly fond.

Newton wants to cry with relief.

\------

Newt makes the call at seven in the morning. Hermann hands him a small device, tells him which buttons to press, and then clears out of the lab.

His heart rate skyrockets when he hears the dial tone. It’s surreal. Why is there a fucking dial tone of all things?

But then the call picks up and Newt has to straighten out his face and pretend like his heart isn’t going a hundred miles a minute.

The video projection is heavily obscured, as Hermann said it would be, but the voice comes through surprisingly clear.

“This is an appeal statement for the asset currently named ‘Hermann Gottlieb’. Please confirm or deny.”

Newt takes a breath. He can do this. “Confirm.”

“Please begin statement,” the voice says.

“My name is Dr. Newton Geiszler. I am a scientist with the PPDC and a colleague of Dr. Gottlieb. I primarily research Kaiju biology. Dr. Hermann Gottlieb has saved countless lives through his contributions to the PPDC program,” Newt says. “I have worked in proximity to him for the past ten years, so I may be the most qualified to report on him.”

Does that sound distant enough? Damn, he really should have practiced this more.

“He helped lay the groundwork for Jaeger programming, helping give us--humanity--a fighting chance. When he moved on to research the Breach, he built a predictive model that helped us locate and time future attacks, allowing us to greatly reduce our response time.”

It sounds too much like a resume. Newt flinches, probably something the camera picked up. He’s never won an argument this way, just stating all the facts.

“The war is not over. While the Breach may be closed, I do not believe that the Precursors will stop their attack on Earth. We may only be familiar with a fraction of their technology, but we know they created the Breach, and it’s only a matter of time before they create another one.”

He doesn’t know it for sure, but he believes it with all of his heart. Some mornings he wakes up completely convinced that a breach is going to tear open at any second and Kaiju are going to come spilling through. There’s always a chance it’s not his fear but rather Hermann’s leaking through the ghost drift. If that’s the case, though, then Newton has way more to be terrified about. Hermann is scientific, pragmatic. If he holds these convictions this strongly, then it’s almost guaranteed to happen.

“Dr. Gottlieb and I, we were the last of the research department to remain. We likely would have lost the w--I would have died--were it not for him.”

Oh, shit. Those were the bad words. He has to fix this, quickly, quickly--

“What I mean to say, is that if the Kaiju come back, and Hermann isn’t here, we will all die, because it was just he and me at the end of it all, because the other researchers left, that’s how I know so strongly that he is needed here. He is smart, he is loyal, he doesn’t give up in the face of adversity.”

Yeah, that’s not helping either. Time to no romo this shit hard because it turns out he is really bad at this no attachments thing.

“Maybe if we’re lucky, we can scrape by without him, but to lose that many people, that much progress, we would never recover. Dr. Gottlieb is a respected colleague, and we all rely greatly on his future contributions here.”

Newt can’t tell if he said the right words or the wrong words at all because the next words from the voice are completely unrelated. “Explain knowledge of Precursor technology.”

“I, uh, I drifted with a Kaiju in a last ditch attempt to end the war,” Newt says hesitantly. He leaves Hermann out of it, just in case they know what the other effects of drifting are. “Alongside extensive study of Kaiju remains.”

The voice coughs, completely breaking character. “I’m sorry, you what? Could you repeat that, please?”

“I drifted with a Kaiju?”

“Acknowledged,” the voice says, sounding bewildered. “Please elaborate on personal relationship with Gottlieb.”

“He’s a colleague,” Newt says. The less the better, right?

“Elaborate.”

Okay, maybe not. “I have worked alongside but not in with him for many years. We share the same goals, but we are extremely dissimilar, which has led our relationship to be defined, at least on my part, as grudging respect? I have never been able to get particularly close to him, as he is extremely private. I realized this early on in our working relationship and felt no inclination to press the issue. I never felt a need for his friendship. I’m surprised we’ve worked together this long, honestly. We are colleagues, nothing more.”

It hurts to say, but it flows so much easier than everything he was stumbling over before. Years and years of practice or firing insults back at Hermann whenever Hermann took offense at his clothing or his taste in music or his inability to properly follow procedure to the dot, it’s almost muscle memory.

Whatever it reveals, it seems to be enough for them to make a decision because the voice says, “Statement complete. Decision will be reached in five minutes. Prepare for reply,” and the call disconnects.

Newt takes a deep breath and stands abruptly, running for the lab door. Hermann is waiting on the other side.

“I have no idea how I did,” Newt says.

Hermann doesn’t reply with words, instead choosing to kiss Newt like he’s dying and he needs to be certain that the last air he’ll ever breathe will be Newt’s.

“I think they’re going to be calling back soon,” Newt says when he’s finally freed.

Hermann freezes and accepts the device from Newt. “I’m supposed to accept this alone.”

“Good luck,” Newt says and gives Hermann one last peck on the lips before Hermann disappears into the lab and the doors close after him.

\-----

After what seems like an eternity, the lab doors open, and Hermann walks through, joy radiating off him in waves.

“They called you an idiot,” he says, though Newt’s pretty sure that’s not what he means.

“What?” Newt asks.

“For drifting with a Kaiju,” Hermann says. “They called you an idiot.”

“That’s fair,” Newt says. The last bit gets muffled as Hermann envelops him with a hug.

“I don’t have to leave,” Hermann whispers. “I don’t have to leave.”

“That’s good,” Newt says. “Thank fuck.”

Hermann laughs.

**Author's Note:**

> i like to give newt all the funky word habits that i also have
> 
>  
> 
> as i was trying to work out a title and a summary, i realized that this is,,, actually angst. i didn't even realize that because i got caught up in the worldbuilding and i knew it was gonna have a happy ending because like, what's the point if it doesn't end happy. the real angst is me trying to come up with a title that isn't bad
> 
>  
> 
> i also got another au fic written up that does the secret relationship bit better, so i'll upload that when i have the chance because i've got literally no time!!!


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